We hope your 2023 New Year’s resolutions include spending more time outdoors and wetting a line at your favorite lake, pond, stream or river! To help you plan, the updated 2023 Georgia Sport Fishing Regulations Guide is now available, says the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Wildlife Resources Division (WRD). 

“The Georgia Sport Fishing Regulations Guide is always a great place to start planning a fishing trip, whether you are brand new to fishing or an experienced angler,” said Scott Robinson, Chief of the WRD Fisheries Management Section. “We develop this publication with the help of fisheries biologists and staff to ensure it has the most current and accurate information on regulations and new opportunities, and we make sure that anglers can access it in multiple ways, including online, from our Outdoors GA app or in the printed copy.”

The guide is currently available online at eregulations.com/georgia/fishing, or through the Outdoors GA app (free app for iPhone or Android users). If you need a printed copy, a pdf of the publication is available online at the previously mentioned link (you can print the full book or only the information you need) or you can visit your local recreational license vendor or a Wildlife Resources Division office (GeorgiaWildlife.com/about/contact) and grab a printed copy of the guide. 

The 2023 Georgia Sport Fishing Regulations Guide provides information such as a color fish identification chart for both freshwater and saltwater fish, license purchasing information, contact information for Wildlife Resources Division and Coastal Resources Division fisheries management offices and DNR Law Enforcement offices, trout stream listings, public fishing area information, state record fish listings, fishing regulations for Georgia and so much more. 

What’s New for 2023? Check out this quick bullet list below and get all the details in the new guidebook:

•         Seven New State Records were caught in 2022 (p.28 & p.42). Will you get the first for 2023?

•         House Pond at Silver Lake Public Fishing Area has updated regulations (p. 21).

·       Blueback herring may now be used for bait on Lake Allatoona.

Need more fishing information? Check out the Angler Resources page on the WRD website (GeorgiaWildlife.com/fishing/angler-resources).